Couple rescued from North York Moors snow drift

A couple have been rescued from their car after it became stuck in a snow drift in North Yorkshire.

Their car came to a halt as conditions worsened before being overwhelmed by snow at Egton on North York Moors.

The couple, from County Durham, spent two hours trying to dig themselves free before fire crews arrived and took them to a nearby hotel.

The rescued woman had recently undergone heart surgery and was in the area to help her recuperation.

Her husband, who did not want to be named, said: "I followed my sat-nav up the steep road and the road was very clear at the time. I slowed down my car to turn a corner and I couldn't get my car going again.

"My wheels were spinning and all of a sudden it started to snow very, very heavily and within an hour and a half I was totally stranded in the snow."

Chris Watson, watch manager at Whitby fire station, said the conditions were so extreme the crew had to abandon fire engines and find the couple using a 4x4 vehicle.

He said: "We don't normally attend these type of incidents but the lady was very poorly.

"I think she had heart surgery so she was very weak. She couldn't walk and because their roadside recovery refused to attend, that's why we attended."